Research in Motion gave analysts a preview of the conpany's upcoming operating system for its BlackBerry smartphone on Monday and said it would launch it next quarter.

In the event, which took place on the eve of RIM's annual Wireless Enterprise Symposium, RIM showed a video of the system, called OS 6.0.

Although the company did not provide many details, the OS 6.0 will be more touch-friendly and will include a new, browser in an effort to compete with rival smartphones like Apple's iPhone and Motorola's Droid. OS 6.0 will also support pinch-to-zoom browsing, support for tabs, a new music player, upgraded photo viewer and a customizable homescreen. BlackBerry will also offer social network applications that combines status updates from both Facebook and Twitter, as well as an integrated chat interface which allows users to message friends on Google Talk, BB Messenger and AIM.

It is not clear whether existing BlackBerry smartphones could be upgraded to 6.0.